conceptualization so you need not feel that you are just assessing rote learning。 If you prefer to give essay
tests or bine essay questions with objective items； you will also find a supply of essay questions in the
test bank。
What will my tests cover？
Tests in introductory classes primarily cover the text； you can select and/or edit items from the
professionally written Test Bank to cover the text material。 You may also prefer to let students know in the
syllabus that tests will include outside…class assignments as well as anything that occurs in class； such as
lectures； films； demonstrations； and experiments。 Of course； you will have to write your own questions to
cover these other aspects of the course。
How long should my tests be？
Most students can read and answer a multiple…choice question in less than a minute； so if your class lasts
50 minutes； the test should have no more than 45 items to allow a few minutes for test distribution。 If your
class period is longer than 50 minutes； give a longer test since reliability increases with test length。 It is best
to make the test the only activity of the class day。
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No matter how much time is allowed for a test； some students will not be ready to hand in their paper when
the allotted time is up。 Tell them you are leaving； and that if they want to receive credit for the test； they must
hand in their papers immediately。
What will I do about students who miss tests？
There is no ideal solution to this problem。 One “must” is that you have a policy you can easily enforce and
that you inform students of this policy in the syllabus。 Ideally； do whatever you can to discourage students
from missing tests。 One way to do this is to require verification of illness or other legitimate reasons for
absence on test days。 Still another helpful hint—inform students in the syllabus that you advise them to
drop the course if they miss more than one test。
The option of allowing students to take the missed test later is not advised。 If you do not have another test
on the material； the class will have to wait until all of the makeups are done before they get feedback。 Even if
you do have another test you can use； you may find yourself proctoring individual students at times that are
convenient for them rather than for you。
Here are two options for dealing with the inevitable situation of missed tests：
。 Assign a score for the missing test based on the student’s performance on the other tests。
Substituting the lowest test score for the missing score discourages students from missing tests；
but it penalizes students who miss a test for legitimate reasons。 Using the average of the other
test scores seems fair； but students who are good strategists will figure out that it is better to be
“sick” than to take a test unprepared。
。 Students drop their lowest quiz score。 This is an attractive option because students who miss a
test can use the missed test as their lowest score。 However； this option is advised only if you
give several tests during the term and only if the tests are roughly equivalent in terms of type
and difficulty。 One caution in this situation is that the last test score should not be dropped。 If
you let students drop the score on the last test； those who are satisfied with their scores on
earlier tests may consider the class finished for them several weeks before the end of the term；
and therefore fail to study material that will be included on the final。
How can I prevent cheating on tests？
This is something we do not like to think or talk about； but cheating in the classroom is a reality； and you
should do what you can to prevent it。 Students who do not cheat bee justifiably upset if they perceive
that you are not doing your best to prevent cheating。 Here are some methods of cheating and some
preventive measures：
。 Copying from an unsuspecting neighbor。 Use the puterized Test Bank to construct two or
more forms of your test。 Each form should be in a different scrambled order。
。 Collaborating with a friend by exchanging papers。 Use vigilant proctoring； watching for
students to exchange papers by passing them under the seats。
。 Getting a copy of the test before it is given。 Keep tests in a securely locked cabinet or file drawer。
Be sure stencils or discarded pages are not left in a wastebasket that is accessible to students。
。 Failure to hand in the test and answer sheet and claiming absence on the day of the test。 Have
students sign an attendance sheet as they enter the classroom。
。 Getting someone else to take the test。 Most campuses that have classes large enough for this to
be a problem issue identification cards with pictures。 Have students bring their cards to class
and show them as they hand in their tests。
。 Surreptitious use of notes。 Have students put all books and papers under their seats and leave
them there until they are ready to hand in their papers and leave。 Another solution is to make
the notes legitimate—allow students to bring to an exam one page of notebook paper with
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anything they want written on it。 This legitimate pony has value in that preparing it is a type of
active study and because clutching their pony tends to reduce anxiety for students who panic
on test day。
How will I provide feedback to students after tests？
On the day of the test； let students know when feedback will be provided。 The longer students have to wait
for correct answers； the less interested they bee in checking their work。 Provide immediate feedback if
you can。 Here are two suggestions for acplishing this：
。 Students record their answers on both the test and the answer sheet。 They hand in the answer
sheet and keep the test； scoring it themselves from a key or keys you post immediately after the
test。 The puterized test bank makes it possible for you to provide feedback that includes
both correct answers and page references from the text。
。 Create an exam that can be pleted in 30 minutes （25–30 multiple…choice questions） and
devote the rest of a 50…minute class to feedback。 Ask students to jot down their answers on their
own paper after they plete the test。 Then collect the students’ answer sheets； while students
retain their notes of their answers and the test。 Review the test items； allowing students to ask
questions about perceived ambiguous items。 At the end of the class； collect the tests and the
students’ notes。 With this procedure； you only have to return the graded answer sheets in order
for students to receive maximum feedback。
How can I avoid hassles about test items？
First； select and write items carefully； being sure that you agree that the keyed answer is the best answer。
Then make your key carefully。 Examine the printout of scores before posting it； and check any item for
ambiguity or incorrect keying if half or more of the students miss it。 If you make a mistake in your choice of
items or on the key； correct it graciously。
Do not spend class time arguing about test items。 Have students submit their case in writing if they feel that
their choice for an item is better than the keyed answer。
DECISIONS ABOUT EVALUATION
Should I use numbers or letters to grade students’ work？
Any activity that is to contribute to students’ grades should be assigned a numerical score so an
unambiguous point system can be used for determining final grades。 Some students have difficulty
understanding that an A on a minor assignment is not weighted as heavily as a D on the final exam。
If you use large numbers； particularly for a large class； the range of final totals for students is larger and the
cutoff between letter grades appears reasonable。
How will I assign final grades？
There are two traditional methods for assigning grades； the criterion…based system and the normative…based
or on…the…curve system。
In criterion…based grading； criteria are published in the syllabus。 For example； if a student gets 92 percent to
100 percent of the maximum number of points； the student can be assured of an A。 This method is preferred
by the majority of instructors because it is easy for students to understand and acmodates variability in
the performance of different classes。
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In normative…based grading it is predetermined that you will； for example； give an A to the top 10 percent of
students； a B to students in the next 20 percent； and so forth。 This method has the advantage of not
requiring you to mit yourself to absolute criteria； but it has the disadvantage of causing some students
to be uncertain about where they stand during the term。 Also； normative…based grading assumes that your
class is a random sample of students who take introductory courses at your school and does not take into
account that some classes as a whole are better than others。 Identical student performance could earn an A
in one class and a B in another when the normative…based system is used。
Should I use standard scores？
Most students have difficulty understanding standard scores。 （How can a score of zero be a C？ Does a
negative score mean that I know less than nothing does？） Standard scores also have the disadvantage of
having a small range。 One situation in which standard scores should be considered is when the test means
for the term are unequal and you are dropping students’ lowest test scores。
DECISIONS ABOUT EXTRA CREDIT WORK
Should I provide an opportunity for students to get course credit for work that is not a class requirement？ If
you fail to state a firm policy on extra credit work in the syllabus； you will be visited by failing students
during the closing weeks of the term。 They would like to write papers； or do something to raise their grades。
A no…extra credit policy is advised； with the rationale that students who are failing the required work would
be better off spending their time on the text rather than writing a paper that is likely to be poorly written or
plagiarized。
If there are to be opportunities for extra credit； they should be available to all students； not just those who
e to your office with sad sto